Lincoln just made a big move in a notoriously difficult market

The new Lincoln Continental. Hollis Johnson When you think of Lincoln, you don't think of Southern California.

Until a couple of years ago, you might not have thought about anything at all, so woeful was the condition of Ford's luxury brand.

But Lincoln is in the midst of a major comeback, copiously funded by Ford, with the goal of reinventing the luxury brand, which has been around since 1917.

The automaker has been the talk of the New York Auto Show two years running, with a smashing Continental concept car in 2015 followed by a stunning Navigator concept in 2016.

Now the brand has undertaken one of its most brash moves to date by opening a sumptuous "Experience Center" at an upscale mall in Newport Beach.

Southern California has long been considered a rock-solid import market, where Toyota and Honda dominate the mass market and BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Lexus, and Acura rule the luxury realm. If you aren't a contractor driving a Ford or Chevy pickup, you aren't supposed to be looking at an American car.

Not that it was always so. In the 1950s and '60s, Lincoln and Cadillac were huge in SoCal. But the '70s and '80s changed all that.

Lincoln wants to restore that vanished glory. In the latest chapter of the comeback, the brand has authored what it's calling the "Lincoln Way," a unified set of services and values that it hopes will change hearts and minds. The Lincoln Way enhances and extends the brand's "Black Label" offering, which provides personalized shopping with dedicated personnel.

"In North America, Lincoln Black Label offers the ultimate expression of Lincoln style and substance," the automaker said in a statement.

"The Lincoln Way builds off the success of Lincoln Black Label with outstanding levels of personalized, effortless solutions delivered with a human touch," Ford said.

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The exterior.
Lincoln

The Experience Center was designed in the now-familiar neo-Spanish style that's pervasive in Southern California. It's located at the Fashion Island mall, a popular outdoor shopping location in Newport Beach.

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Not your typical car dealership.
Lincoln

"Our share and consideration in the area is low'" said Kumar Galhotra, Lincoln's president. "But we've embarked on growing our share in Southern California. The area is one of the largest luxury markets."

Inside the Experience Center, customers can enjoy a deeper and more immersive process than they might encounter at a traditional dealership.

Automakers have been exploring these retail concepts for a a while now. Tesla, for example, has located stores in high-end malls throughout the US.

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Plush seating — it's like an airport lounge.
Lincoln

"What we're doing all comes back to a very deep understanding of the luxury customers," Galhotra said. "There's no pressure to engage with a dealer, but you can have a phone call or Skype with one if you're interested."

According to Galhotra, Lincoln dealers in the area are excited to have the Experience Center opening. And of course, you still have to buy a Lincoln through a dealer, so the center is a business driver, and a pleasant one, at that. The interior design is like an upscale living room, a physical manifestation of Lincoln's idea of "quiet luxury."

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Educating customers.
Lincoln

Interactive displays assist prospective buyers in learning about what Lincoln has to offer.

Low-pressure sales environments haven't always been successful in the car business. Saturn enjoyed inspired early passion in customers but later fizzled out.

For Galhotra, the Lincoln center is more about education than sales, however.

He also stressed that the Experience Center and the Lincoln Way are about maximizing potential customers' and existing owners' most valuable asset: time.

"We're trying to create a total, holistic experience," he said. "And we're asking ourselves, 'What can we do to bring the brand to them?'"

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Thirsty?
Lincoln

It all does look pretty chill. If you're in the mood, you can learn about Lincolns while enjoying a refreshing beverage.

As automakers increasingly expand the level of service they provide to their most affluent and profitable customers, we should expect more of this kind of thing.

What's surprising about this Experience Center is that it's coming from Lincoln, which was all but left for dead after the financial crisis, when Ford was shedding brands left and right (Aston Martin, Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover).

The comeback is far from complete. But Lincoln certainly has a lot more self-confidence these days.